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No sooner has the ink dried on the deal between SEGA and Sammy to merge companies, has the House of Sonic had to issue a denial on several fronts of rumours that both Electronic Arts and Microsoft are planning a takeover. A XenGamers story (via TSSZ) says that a SEGA representative has had to release a public statement. This reads, "We have not received any formal proposal on a capital alliance and no such issue has been discussed at our board meetings or chief executives meetings. On the contrary, Sega continues to make preparations for a proposed merger with Japanese arcade manufacturer Sammy." Microsoft - which has been rumoured to buy SEGA since late 2002 - has apparently asked lenders in the US for ways it can finance a partial or complete buyout of the Japanese publisher. This is according to a report in the Asian Wall Street Journal (via CNET), which also said that Electronic Arts approached other game companies about launching a joint bid for control as well. Importantly, the report states that, while all this chat is going on, no formal talks have been held between either company and SEGA, and no deal was actually imminent. So, basically, just a lot of nonsense. But, shortly after the Asian Wall Street Journal story was published (via Gamespot), a new report from the Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper announced that EA was in fact in discussions with SEGA over a potential sale. This, we should mention, is all taking into account that everyone knows already that SEGA is merging with Sammy! What a weird, weird, WEIRD month this has been for SEGA and corporate buyouts! Can things get back to normal now, please? View full story

Chalk this one up to being one MASSIVE rumour at the moment, but reports are circulating that Xbox console manufacturer Microsoft could be eyeing up a takeover of SEGA. Shares in SEGA rose by 17 per cent as a result of the speculation. A report from AlwaysGame (via TSSZ) outline that the company's share price "rose as much as 200 yen, or the exchange-imposed limit, to 1,385 yen in afternoon trading and ended 134 yen, or 11.3 percent higher, at the 3 p.m. market close." All based on the idea that SEGA could be bought out by Microsoft. Before we start wondering what kind of future SEGA would look like as an Xbox company, it's worth pointing out that SEGA itself is unaware of anything happening. According to SEGA spokesperson Hiroyuki Soga and Microsoft Japan rep Kazushi Okabe, no such plans are in the works. Likely that it's just investors getting worked up over nothing, although it would be interesting if this ever ended up happening - SEGA does have a close third-party relationship with Microsoft for its Xbox, and the Dreamcast did use Windows OS technology... although Sonic has, of course, made his home on Nintendo platforms since SEGA's drop out of the console market. Would Sonic be as comfortable on an Xbox? Who knows? If this rumour ends up being untrue, it might not even matter. View full story

It sounds like SEGA is in a bit more of a stable situation since exiting the console business a year or so ago, as according to a new report the company is interested in purchasing some third-party publishers to add to its list of development studios. According to a story on Reuters (via Gamespot), the House of Sonic is mostly looking towards publishers in the West - North America and Europe - in an attempt to "strengthen its position in the market and move it closer to the achievement of its goal to be the top publisher in the world." THQ and Infogrames, two publishers that have had close connections with SEGA in the past, are name-checked as potential acquisition targets, but one company that is apparently ruled out is FIFA publisher Electronic Arts. This may be great news for SEGA and its growth as a third-party publisher. We'll let you know if anything comes of this. View full story